ILO Report: End in sight for low-wage production in China?
14 December 2012
With wages in China more than tripling between 2000 and 2010, a report from UN body the International Labour Organization (ILO) suggests the country’s long-held position as a country of cheap goods based on low-wage labour looks set to change.
Fri, 14 Dec 2012
With wages in China more than tripling between 2000 and 2010, a report from UN body the International Labour Organization (ILO) suggests the country’s long-held position as a country of cheap goods based on low-wage labour looks set to change.
By 2015, the country’s labour force may start to shrink, increasing demand, competition and pay for workers, it says.Indeed, the country’s rapid wage growth is an indicator of a broad shift in government policy towards a more sustainable less export-reliant economy.
Sangheon Lee, one of the co-authors of the ILO Global Wage Report 2012/2013, available online, comments: “If some enterprises seeking low cost production move out of China, it would be an opportunity for less developed countries in the region.
“We would hope that the relocation of factories to less expensive countries will push workers’ wages up in those countries but it may not happen if effective labour market institutions are not in place.”
With wages in China more than tripling between 2000 and 2010, a report from UN body the International Labour Organization (ILO) suggests the country’s long-held position as a country of cheap goods based on low-wage labour looks set to change.
By 2015, the country’s labour force may start to shrink, increasing demand, competition and pay for workers, it says.Indeed, the country’s rapid wage growth is an indicator of a broad shift in government policy towards a more sustainable less export-reliant economy.
Sangheon Lee, one of the co-authors of the ILO Global Wage Report 2012/2013, available online, comments: “If some enterprises seeking low cost production move out of China, it would be an opportunity for less developed countries in the region.
“We would hope that the relocation of factories to less expensive countries will push workers’ wages up in those countries but it may not happen if effective labour market institutions are not in place.”
- The changing face of the talent market across Asia was the subject of a Recruiter roundtable event last month, sponsored by Telstra Global, where staffing group Empresaria explained to Recruiter about how it is now operating its Chinese business. See more on p42 of the new edition of Recruiter, out this week.
